(CNN) – Police in Richmond, Virginia have released more details about a bullet that hit an office used by House Minority Whip Eric Cantor.

Cantor revealed to reporters Thursday that his office had been hit by a bullet. He accused top Democrats of "fanning the flames" of violence by using threats that have been made against Democratic members "as political weapons."

Read the full police report on the incident after the jump:

Bryan T. Norwood

Chief of Police

News Release

Richmond Police Investigate Cantor Building Vandalism

March 25, 2010

The Richmond Police Department is investigating an act of vandalism at the Reagan Building, 25 E. Main St., Richmond, Virginia. A first floor window was struck by a bullet at approximately 1 a.m. on Tuesday, March 23. The building, which has several tenants including an office used by Congressman Eric Cantor, was unoccupied at the time.

A Richmond Police detective was assigned to the case. A preliminary investigation shows that a bullet was fired into the air and struck the window in a downward direction, landing on the floor about a foot from the window. The round struck with enough force to break the windowpane but did not penetrate the window blinds. There was no other damage to the room, which is used occasionally for meetings by the congressman.

The Richmond Police Department is sharing information about the incident with appropriate law enforcement agencies.

soundoff(149 Responses)

Sandy

Doesn't sound like they were airming for the office. Wonder who else is in the building?

March 25, 2010 05:12 pm at 5:12 pm |

skillful shooting

Fired into the air, came back toward the window in a downward direction, and hit with sufficient force to break the window without penetrating the blinds? If this shot was intended to do exactly as it did, I'd have to credit the shooter with expert marksmanship. Sounds like a random thing to me, and downtown Richmond at 1 am is the kind of place you'd encounter random gunfire.

March 25, 2010 05:12 pm at 5:12 pm |

Victim of GOP Taliban

Doesn't sound very convincing. Why would someone shoot upward in the air and intentionally try to hit the window with a downward angle? It makes no sense. I don't believe a single word out of Cantor's mouth. Every single thing he says is for his own selfish gain.

March 25, 2010 05:14 pm at 5:14 pm |

Vickie

Well I guess technically, the office was hit by a bullet. But, it's more like the bullet was thrown through the window? :o

March 25, 2010 05:16 pm at 5:16 pm |

JIM

Shooting at a member of Congress isa serious affair, and it should be, regadless of political party.

Why is Cantor deliberately lying about it?

March 25, 2010 05:17 pm at 5:17 pm |

Allen in Hartwell GA

Sounds to me like an NRA member had a little too much to drink and was shooting up in the air because..., well, just because he could!

March 25, 2010 05:18 pm at 5:18 pm |

The Revolution Begins

I think its good that people are starting to stand up and started do something, no matter what its for, health care, economy, education. That reminds me when all of those college student rallied because of rising school prices, did there words help keep the price down, or where they just heard and pushed aside. Keep taking action. The Revolution Begins...

March 25, 2010 05:21 pm at 5:21 pm |

John Dennison

Some Dems just aren't going to take this crap.

March 25, 2010 05:23 pm at 5:23 pm |

dave

Bull loney, the sorry GOP is just trying to defect their encouragement of violence against Dems, just pathetic, staged, ba-bye now GOP

March 25, 2010 05:24 pm at 5:24 pm |

Charles

Looks like Cantor can not even tell the truth about this, the report states
"A first floor window was struck by a bullet at approximately 1 a.m. on Tuesday, March 23. The building, which has several tenants including an office used by Congressman Eric Cantor, was unoccupied at the time."

Cantor says a bullet was fired at his office. There is a difference between "my office" and the building that is occupied by his office and other tenants.

Acoording to Cantor "The American People do not want this.. bill" so why would anybody fire at him. if "the American People " are on his side

March 25, 2010 05:25 pm at 5:25 pm |

Doug

I'll bet it was one of his own people.

March 25, 2010 05:26 pm at 5:26 pm |

ClintonFan

Name one top democrat who has "fanned the flames" of violence. The fact of the matter is that it is the Republican party, the tea partiers and right-wing radio that are inciting the real attacks. Sarah Palin herself, just wrote "reload" in a twitter post. I can hear the cocking of the guns already. What nonsense from a man who spent more time on his blackberry than listeing the president deliver his address.

March 25, 2010 05:27 pm at 5:27 pm |

Patriot

You reap what you sow......

Maybe the Republicans should have given a second thought to teaching folks how to disrupt town halls last summer?....

Or maybe the Repubs should not have been on the Congress balcony cheering on the Tea Baggers who spit on and hurled racial and homophobic epithets at Democratic members as they neared the building to vote?...

Maybe the Repubs should corral Beck, Limpbaugh, Levin and the other hate mongers that they've used so far to astroturf anger in this country?

Maybe Sarah Palin should rethink using crosshairs to indicated Democrats to go after in the next election?

Now that all this is spilling over to the very people who generated it they are shocked and appalled? And they have the stones to blame the Democrats?

Their hypocrisy knows no bounds....

March 25, 2010 05:28 pm at 5:28 pm |

KLS

After reading the police report it doesn't seem that Cantor's office window was an actual target. Probably some idots shooting their guns in the air after having too much to drink.

I hope they find out who did this.

March 25, 2010 05:29 pm at 5:29 pm |

The GOP wants to take our country backwards

OMG!!!! What an idiot! There has been legitimate violence and threats against Democrats, so Cantor thought he would jump on the bus and try to say that the same thing has been happening to the GOP. Too bad his claim turned out to be highly exaggerated and not even a threat. A bullet fired by someone into the air managed to come down and hit the windowsill of an office used by Cantor -- they were not even aiming at his office!!!!! This simply makes Cantor look incredibly stupid.

March 25, 2010 05:30 pm at 5:30 pm |

Sniffit

Sooo basically, it wasn't an act of threatening violence, it was someone who inappropriately fired a gin in the air and it randomly hit the dude's window. Seriously, I'd like to see someone who can aim like that on purpose. Cantor Cantor pants on fire. What an freekin embarassment to himself he is. One would wonder why someone would stand around for a good long while firing bullets into the air until they managed to hit the window if they truly intended to make a threat then skidaddle and not get caught. This is either random coincidence or political shenanigans.

I still demand to see/hear the threats he claims to have received. I just don't buy that he received any.

March 25, 2010 05:32 pm at 5:32 pm |

Preston

So the bullet was "fired in the air", and NOT at Cantor's office. Perhaps it was fired by one of Cantor's friends – or by Cantor himself. One thing that seems reasonably certain is that it was not intended to cause damage. Unlike the attacks on Democrats.

March 25, 2010 05:33 pm at 5:33 pm |

cspurgeon

This man has never done anything but express hate. He is a total whiner at all times, but I do think we need to catrch some of the nuts on both sides and get on to other things.

March 25, 2010 05:35 pm at 5:35 pm |

JustAGuyOnTheInternet

I hope you guys bring him on tonight to answer these now obviously fabricated claims. How low will these Republicans sink? Next up, Cantor staffer shows up to work with a backwards "B" carved in to her cheek.

Thank the flying spaghetti monster we have an adult in the White House.

March 25, 2010 05:36 pm at 5:36 pm |

A Real American

Faked, just like the faked "Brooks Brothers Riot" in the 2000 election.

Scratch beneath the surface, and you will find that the bullet matches a Republican gun, guaranteed.

Faked "events" lead to faked outrage– right Cantor?

March 25, 2010 05:37 pm at 5:37 pm |

Jo Jo

Don’t believe anything that comes out of the republican party's mouth. This was staged by the GOP to make them look like victims instead of the creator of all this violence toward the Democratic Party. There is no limit to how low they will stoop to score political points. They started all of this nonsense and now they are trying to pawn it off on the democrats. What a bunch of low -life criminals.

March 25, 2010 05:37 pm at 5:37 pm |

Al Bluengreenenbrownenburger

Read the police report. The bullet was shot from so far away that it was coming downwards, and was so spent that it could not penetrate the blinds. Considering how far away this shot came from, the Republican dingbat was almost certainly not the target.

Though he did milk it for some absurd blow-hard gibberish about it being a political attack. Hey Cantor! Got news for ya! It's the people on YOUR side enacting the violence!

March 25, 2010 05:37 pm at 5:37 pm |

Fed Up

According to extremists like Eric Cantor, liberals and Democrats are anti-gun. Why would they resort to using firearms now? Especially after they won a big victory.

More likey, someone took a shot at his office to get some good ole headlines and sympathy for Eric, who obviously has not gotten all the egg off of his face after the big GOP loss.

Either that or maybe Dick Cheney mistook Cantor for a Dem.

March 25, 2010 05:40 pm at 5:40 pm |

JO59

Interesting...1am..no one there..downward flight so no one would get hurt... now blames Dems...hmmmm....have local police check out the NRA Tea Partiers

March 25, 2010 05:40 pm at 5:40 pm |

Mitch

Of course, CNN's coverage of this seems to minimize the Cantor attack, but its coverage of "conservative" anger against liberals is intense and plentiful. Nice try at playing the middle.